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Redding bushing not the size it says it is?

XTR

F-TR obssessed shooting junkie
Anyone ever run across a Redding bushing that is undersized? The bushing it clearly marked 335.

I load both Lapua and WW and I decided to stop having to change the setting on my Lee collet and use it for my WW and use my Redding FL Bushing die for my Lapua. Was doing some setup this afternoon and the first Lapua case I ran in what was supposed to be a 335 die came out way under, like 332, which is what I need for my WW, not my Lapua.

Sized a piece of my WW and checked both with my calipers and with my micrometer. Sizing to 332 is a long way from 335. (Loaded Lapua cases measure .337, I was looking for .002 neck tension) Five thousanths neck tension is not what I had in mind. I may rearrange my plan and use the collet for the Lapua and the bushing for the WW. What do I have to do, buy 5 bushings to find the right one?
 
hmmm how do they know how much YOUR brass will spring back ?...
did you measure the bushing ?
 
XTR said:
Anyone ever run across a Redding bushing that is undersized? The bushing it clearly marked 335.

I load both Lapua and WW and I decided to stop having to change the setting on my Lee collet and use it for my WW and use my Redding FL Bushing die for my Lapua. Was doing some setup this afternoon and the first Lapua case I ran in what was supposed to be a 335 die came out way under, like 332, which is what I need for my WW, not my Lapua.

Sized a piece of my WW and checked both with my calipers and with my micrometer. Sizing to 332 is a long way from 335. (Loaded Lapua cases measure .337, I was looking for .002 neck tension) Five thousanths neck tension is not what I had in mind. I may rearrange my plan and use the collet for the Lapua and the bushing for the WW. What do I have to do, buy 5 bushings to find the right one?

If the case neck is sized a lot, then the brass overshoots the measurment and comes out smaller - take the bushing out of the die and you will see that it fits loosely on the sized neck - they write aa paragraph about it in the catalogue.

"The easiest way to determine the proper diameter bushing, is to measure the neck diameter of several loaded
or dummy cartridges with an accurate micrometer.
Subtract .001”–.002” from the smallest average neck diameter and this diameter bushing will generally size
case necks to create the proper press fit for the bullet.
Note: If the neck wall thickness of your cases is on the thin side of the SAAMI tolerance, your fired case necks
will measure considerably larger (.006-.010” larger) than your loaded cartridges. Under these circumstances,
our tests have shown that a bushing .001“ larger may give the desired results.

Another method is to measure the neck thickness with a ball micrometer. Double the neck wall thickness and
add this number to the bullet diameter. The result is the neck diameter of a loaded cartridge, and bushing size
can be determined as above.
After loading several cases, it’s a good idea to test the neck’s grip on the bullet. The simplest method is to push
the bullet in a loaded cartridge against the edge of your reloading bench with moderate hand pressure. The bullet
should not move easily in the case neck. If the bullet pushes deeper in the case, select the next smaller bushing
and start again.
When using your bushing die, we have found that lubricating case necks and installing the bushing numbers
down may improve results. Many reloaders like to adjust the die to size 1/2 to 3/4 of the case neck. This
has been shown to improve accuracy in some instances."
 
I think you can check the bushing's actual inside diameter with a pin gauge if you can borrow or find one that size and maybe one on either side of that size to check. Perhaps a local machine shop or metal fabricating place might have a set.
 
I've never had a problem with Redding bushings, although I have read several posts that they are an issue.

If you are sizing down from say .005" larger you will get over sizing occurring. Typically I find this over sizing in the vicinity of .0005" and not the .003" that you are seeing.

Unfortunately the only way to determine if a bushing is not what it says it is - is to measure the ID of the bush, all else is measuring the effects of sizing.
 
Measuring the inside of the bushings is going to be a long shot for me, I don't really have the tools other than the inside jaws on the calipers, and that's not too accurate.

I'm sizing down from .340 on fired cases. I picked the bushing based on the neck on my loaded rounds. For the time being I've already changed my setup and I'm going to run my WW through the bushing die and do the two step with a FL and the collet die for my Lapua.
 
XTR said:
Measuring the inside of the bushings is going to be a long shot for me, I don't really have the tools other than the inside jaws on the calipers, and that's not too accurate.

I'm sizing down from .340 on fired cases. I picked the bushing based on the neck on my loaded rounds. For the time being I've already changed my setup and I'm going to run my WW through the bushing die and do the two step with a FL and the collet die for my Lapua.

A lotta guys have this problem - they send the bushing back to Redding, and they get the same one right back.

It is not the bushing.

People tell you to get a bushing that is 2 thou under - well that is nice advice IF you have a tight neck chamber, but it is useless advice if you have a SAAMI chamber. You could easily need a bushing that is 1 or 2 thou LARGER than your loaded neck. You my need several bushings... it is, what it is.

Call Redding tomorrow and talk to them about it.
 
Had same issue. Have a thread up about it

Was told that I'd you size 5 thous or more the neck over shots the bidding. I had same issue my 336 bushing sizing to 334
 
XTR said:
Measuring the inside of the bushings is going to be a long shot for me, I don't really have the tools other than the inside jaws on the calipers, and that's not too accurate.

I'm sizing down from .340 on fired cases. I picked the bushing based on the neck on my loaded rounds. For the time being I've already changed my setup and I'm going to run my WW through the bushing die and do the two step with a FL and the collet die for my Lapua.

The only suggestion I can make is; see if you have something that is say .333 - .334. If it doesn't fit it isn't .335. i.e. you just need to prove that it is smaller than .335 not actually measure it.
 
They are not that expensive, when you consider that I have several thousand $$ tied up in in Berger bullets as ballast under my bench buying a few bushings is pretty small potatoes in the grand scheme of things. I'm pretty happy that it's the right size for my W-W because the one I got for that brass that is supposed to be a .332 is making .329 necks. At least one of them is the right size.

I'll just order three more in 337, 338, 339 and see which one works.

Thanks everyone for the feedback. I didn't realize this was pretty common. I learned something today.
 
If you sized the neck down to much in one step, the neck will be smaller in diameter. As said on Redding website,
Question:

The Neck Sizing Bushing that I use for my "Type S" Die is not sizing my case necks to the diameter written on the bushing. Is my bushing undersized / oversized?

Answer:

While it is possible that a Bushing's inside diameter is incorrect, it is very unlikely. In fact, our bushings are good enough that some folks use our bushings as an "ID standard" to set inside diameter measuring instruments. We Sunnen hone all of our bushings to a tolerance of -.0005 inch. (For example, a .333 diameter bushing will measure no larger than .3330 and no smaller than .3325, usually about .3327 to .3328).

It is very common for reloaders to measure the inside diameter of their bushing with a dial or digital caliper. Because the inside surface of a bushing is circular, the flat surfaces on the inside jaws of a caliper cannot be used to obtain accurate measurements (known as bridging). Not to mention the fact that even the best calipers are only accurate to +/- .001. Using precision ground I.D. Plug Gauges is the only way to accurately measure the I.D. of our Bushings.

Likewise, one cannot measure the neck of a "sized" piece of brass to determine a bushing's size. Because of springback and the metallurgic properties of brass, the neck of a sized case will not reflect the exact inside diameter of the bushing that it was sized in. Because of the case differences, both new and as they work harden with age, most serious handloaders end up with several bushings to control bullet tension (bullet pull) closely.

As always, Redding is happy to examine a bushing that appears defective. Should we find that the bushing's inside diameter is incorrect, it will be replaced under our Warranty with no questions asked. Please contact us before mailing any product to us for warranty inspection so that we can be sure that we are solving the difficulty you are having.
 
XTR... are you sure its a Redding?

I ask becasue a Wilson will interchange with Redding, and they (Wilson) are cut so that when you flip it upside-down, it will size a bit differently, I think its like 0.0005" difference top-side vs bottom-side.
 
XTR said:
Measuring the inside of the bushings is going to be a long shot for me, I don't really have the tools other than the inside jaws on the calipers, and that's not too accurate.

I'm sizing down from .340 on fired cases. I picked the bushing based on the neck on my loaded rounds. For the time being I've already changed my setup and I'm going to run my WW through the bushing die and do the two step with a FL and the collet die for my Lapua.

Here's something that might make measuring the inside of the bushings and it is very useful for several other things I've found.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/462291/cerrosafe-chamber-casting-alloy-1-2-lb?cm_vc=ProductFinding
 
If you have a standard (anvil) micrometer and a ball micrometer, you can measure the ID of the bushing with reasonable (not perfect) accuracy.

OD minus (2 times the wall thickness) equals the ID.
 
Busdriver said:
If you have a standard (anvil) micrometer and a ball micrometer, you can measure the ID of the bushing with reasonable (not perfect) accuracy.

OD minus (2 times the wall thickness) equals the ID.

If the hole is not perfectly centered (none of mine are), this will give you a very erroneous result :( :( :(
 
Well, digging around on the bench I found a .336 Forster bushing from a neck die. Dropped it in the Redding and locked the upper bolt so the busing can float a bit (Forster bushings are ever so slightly smaller than Reddings) and wonderbra! perfect necks. Sized 20, checked runout, effectively = zero (nothing I can see with my tool) Solution found.

Use the Forster bushing for my Lapua and the Redding for my W-W.
 

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